This invention relates to devices for suspending and opening liquid dispensing bottles.
A need frequently arises for supporting a liquid dispensing bottle in a manner so that it is readily available to a person wishing to use the contents of the bottle. One example of such a situation is the case of a plastic water bottle containing purified water used for human drinking purposes. It is not always possible for the person wishing to have the water bottle near him to hold the water bottle in his hands. A frequent solution is to set the water bottle on the floor or ground near the user. This, however, has disadvantages. The user may be engaged in another activity and it may be awkward for him to reach down and pick up the water bottle when he wishes to take a drink. Also, the water bottle may present an obstacle for other people passing nearby. And for the case where the user is engaged in an activity which involves moving considerable distances from one place to another, the setting of the bottle on the ground is not a practical solution.
Another problem with drink bottles is that it is sometimes difficult to remove the cap from the bottle for purposes of drinking the contents. The cap is tightly threaded onto a threaded neck portion of the bottle and, for one reason or another, the user cannot break the seal. Maybe his hands are sweaty or a bit greasy and he cannot get a good grip on the cap. Or maybe a physical impairment prevents him from getting a sufficiently tight grip. In these and similar cases, it would be desirable to provide a simple, inexpensive device for loosening or removing the cap from the bottle. This is particularly desirable for initially breaking the safety seal of the bottle cap.
The present invention provides a simple and inexpensive combination bottle hook and bottle cap wrench for a drink bottle having a threaded neck portion and a bottle cap or closure member threaded onto such neck portion. The bottle hook feature enables the user to hook the bottle onto the frame of a stationary exercise machine, the handle bar of a bicycle, the open upper end of a golf bag, a belt being worn by the user when jogging, and so forth. The bottle cap wrench feature enables the user to quickly and easily remove the bottle cap, even though his hands may be sweaty or oily.
The combination device of this invention is comprised of an L-shaped piece of plastic material having first and second legs extending at substantially right angles relative to one another. The first leg is a flat elongated member having an enlarged open-ended C-shaped head portion for pushing onto and clamping around a neck of a drink bottle when it is desired to hook the drink bottle onto a support structure. The inner surface of the C-shaped head portion is serrated or notched for gripping the bottle cap by placement of the C-shaped head portion on the bottle cap and using the first leg as a wrench when it is desired to loosen or remove the bottle cap. The second leg of the L-shaped piece of plastic material is a flat elongated member providing a retaining member for placement behind a portion of the structure on which it is desired to hook the drink bottle.
For a better understanding of the present invention, together with other and further advantages and features thereof, reference is made to the following description taken in connection with the accompanying drawings, the scope of the invention being pointed out in the appended claims.